Candidate sanctioned for satirical comments on Facebook photo
By April Hoang
April 17, 2017 8:33 p.m.
This post was updated April 17 at 11:37 p.m.
The undergraduate student government election board sanctioned a candidate Monday for comments made on his Facebook profile picture.
The election board ruled that external vice president candidate Jack Price, who is running independently in this year’s Undergraduate Students Association Council election, engaged in social media campaigning before the allowed start date. This is the fourth campaign sanction of the year.
Social media campaigning began Monday at noon. On Friday, two students and a former student commented satirically on Price’s photo, which the election board said was mocking other candidates who are running in a different slate.
The election board oversees the USAC election process and enforces the election code’s regulations. The code defines campaigning as any effort to influence any voter’s decision for or against any slate, candidate or ballot initiative.
The board’s sanction notice said the comments made on Price’s photo are efforts to influence students against the Bruins United slate and candidates Aaron Boudaie and Sophie Butler.
The board looked into all three comments but determined that only the comment made by former student Joe Jacobson could be considered campaigning. The comments have not been modified or deleted. Price is restricted from campaigning on social media for 30 minutes on Tuesday.
Jacobson, who worked on multiple student government campaigns while at UCLA, said he is not involved in Price’s campaign and believes the election board defines liability too loosely. Price declined to comment on the situation.
Click here for full coverage of the 2017 USAC elections.
